Encryption products are critical for securing electronic commerce and global communications over the Internet, giving rise to the debate about whether to relax or restrict export standards.

The debate pits those who favor capturing foreign encryption markets with US technology, notably the software industry, against law enforcement agencies, who say the risk of encryption technology falling into nefarious hands is unacceptable, no matter how lucrative.

The bill, authored by Representative Bob Goodlatte (R-Virginia), would relax existing rules that restrict the export of most strong encryption by allowing sales of products that are similar to products already for sale by foreign companies. Analysts have said existing export limits could cost the domestic software industry more than US$30 billion in lost sales.

The Clinton administration has opposed the bill, but last year the White House loosened some export rules for products being sold to foreign banks, insurance companies, health care providers, and subsidiaries of US companies.

Encryption uses mathematical formulas to scramble information and render it unreadable without a password or software "key." One measure of the strength of an encryption product is the length of the key measured in bits.